strahan



Oct. 2, 1928.

J. c. J. STRAHAN woMAus STOCKING Filed July 13, 1928 Til ATTORNEY dition which it then is.

Patented Oct. 2, 1928.

UNITED STATES JOSEPH O. J. S'JJBAIHZAJiI'. OF NEW YORK, N.

WoiyiANs Application filed July 13,

My present invention relates generally to a double toe for stockings, and more particularly to a double construction of the toe portion for full fashioned stockings.

As certain phases of my invention are specifically directed to the problem of providing a double toe for a full fashioned stocking, as distinguished from a seamless stocking, I have illustrated my invention as embodied in a full fashioned stocking, and the description of the invention and the claims herein appended as far as they are directed to such phases will be understood as applying specifically to such character of stocking.

An object of my invention is the provision of an arrangement whereby the toe portion of the stocking is in the form of superposed independent toe members, each of which is so associated with the other or others and with the foot part of the stocking that any or either of these too members can be removed readily when worn through and which removal will nevertheless leave the stocking in a condition where its knitted continuity is in no way impaired or adversely affected, so that with the removal of such member so worn through the stocking will have the appearance to all intents and purposes of hav ing been originally manufactured in the con- .In accordance with the embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, I attain this objective by providing the foot of a stocking with a plurality of independent toe members, together forming the toe portion, each of the members being associated with the foot portion as if it were to form the conventional toe portion of the stocking, and each capable of being severed from the foot portion by a simple cutting operation, so that the remaining toe member will form the entire toe portion of the stocking, and because of the manner in which it has been associated with the foot portion will not only preserve the continuity of the conventional knitted stocking but will also in appearance be nothing more than the conventional stockin %Vhere in connection with the manufacture of a 'full fashioned stocking I have attempted to attain this result by knitting a complete stocking, including the toe portion, in a conventional way and then transferring s'rocinuo.

1928, Serial No. 292,336.

this finished stocking to the needles on approximately a line which defines the starting point of the toe-portion, and then knit-' ting a second toe portion beginning at this line which defines the start ofthe already finished toe portion, and along which line the stocking has been transferred to the needles, I have found that this cannot be done successfully with the present day apparatus, for a number of reasons, one of them being the fact that the primary toe portion already knitted Will so interfere with the knitting operation of the second or added toe, because of the limitations presented by the knitting machine apparatus, as to make this method of manufacture impossible. I have furthermore found that, disregarding for a moment the manufacturing difficulties presented by such a method, there would result at the point where the knitting of the second toe starts, a ridge of such a character as makes it almost impossible for the stocking to be worn comfortably.

It was to overcome these difliculties that I needles of the knitting machine and then turned back, the knitting of the stocking being continued in the ordinary manner to knit the primary or conventional toe -It is an essential feature of my invention that the provision of the two-toe construction shall not be by the association of an extra toe with the stocking after the primary or conventional toe has already been knitted.

As a further feature of my invention and so as to permit of the ready removal of the added toe portion, or where desired of the primary toe portion, I so complete the stocking structure after the knitting operation has been finished as to make the toes virtually independent of each other except at the point where in the referred embodiment of the invention, as a ove referred to, the extra toe has been topped on the needles of the stocking being knitted.

For theattainment of these objects and such other objects as may-hereinafter be pointed out, I have illustrated embodiments of my invention in the drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan or face view partly broken away of the foot portion of a full fashioned stocking before the stocking has been looped and seamed, showing the double toe construction.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the foot portion of the completed stocking, with the inner toe member extended inwardly.-

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the foot portion of the stocking, showing one of the toe portions worn through and partly removed.

Fig. 4 is a section taken on a vertical plane through the double toe portion.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view showing a step in the process.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5, showing theil completion of the second toe portion; an

Fig. 7 is a front view on an enlarged scale showing the knit of Fig. 6.

As certain phases of my invention are specifically directed to the manner in which a secondary toe portion is associated with a full fashioned stocking so as to give to the stocking a. double toe and as the invention has been so illustrated, I will premise that in Fig. 2 of the drawings the foot portion 10 and the toe member 11 in the invention therein illustrated disclose substantially a stocking knitted flat in the conventional way, with the primary toe member ll-rejnforced also in a conventionalway, as for example by the employment of a 5-thread strand of silk plated with a 290-cotton or mercerized cotton where the stocking itself is what is generally known in the industry as sheer ose.

Before proceeding to describe my invention I will premise that I first knit complete toe members 15 separately, and that during the operation of knitting the foot portion 16 of the stocking and at the time when the knitting operation has reached the point where the knitting of the regular toe is to start, I transfer to the needles of the knitting machine the already knitted toe member 15, as clearly shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, which illustrates my method just at the point where this transfer of the. already knitted toe member15 to the needles of the knitting machine has been effected.

Having done this, the extra toe member 15 is turned back, as shown in Fig. 5 ofthe drawings, and the knitting operation of the foot portion continued to knit the toe until this toe member 17, which I will term the primary toe member, has been knitted in its entirety, at which time I will have a knitted foot such as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings and of the knit which has been illustrated in Fig. 7 of the drawings. The reference numeral 18 indicates the loops of the already knitted toe member 15 which have been transferred to the needles of the knit- V ting machine.

More specifically, one manner of accomplishing this result is by having the extra toestopped by toppers and transferred to the bars (not shown) of the conventional knitting machine. These bars are set in a machine and are transferred to an empty machine and placed on the knockover bits until the machine is set up where the toe starts. Then the extra toe is put up from under the knockover bits and the regular toe is made and the extra toe knitted to it. This method brings the extra toe below.

Another method of accomplishing my result is by topping the extra toes on a stand and transferring them to the bar so that when the footing machine gets to work, the toe starts. The operator then puts over his transfer bar or holder and sets his bar in transferring the extra toe to the instep and sole. Then he starts knitting the regular toe with the extra toe on top.

The extreme portions of each of the toes are then looped separately as shown at 20 and the heel is then also looped, after which the stocking is transferred to -a seaming machine and the supplementary toe is seamed separately as shown at 21; and then the rest of the stocking, including the integral toe, is seamed in the usual manner (see reference numeral 22). The stocking is then turned inside out to give the complete stocking of my invention.

In the above mentioned description of a preferred method of actually manufacturing a stocking in accordance with my invention, it will be observed that one of the important features of my invention resides in the fact 105 that the already knitted toe is transferred to the needles of the knitting machine be fore the knitting of the conventional or primary toe is started, and that after this already knitted extra or secondary toe istransferred to the needles of the knittilm ma-. chine, the knitting of the regular or prlmary toe is continued and finished in the conventional manner, so that viewing that portion of the stocking made up of the parts 10 115,

and 11 it is a conventional stocking knitted in a conventional way, and it is as to the manner in which this extra, already knitted, toe member 15 is associated with the stocking that this phase of my inventionis di- 1 rooted, because of the fact that I have found by actual experience that it is diflicult, if not impossible, to associate an already knitted toe with the stocking after the regular or conventional-toe has been finished.

While I have illustrated and described my preferred method of attaining the above mentioned result by transferring the already knit extra toe 15 to theneedles of the knitting machine at the particular time and along the particular line above referred to, and then continuing the knitting, it will be understood that I can attain my desired results in a general sort of a way by changes in the above described procedure.

As will be observed upon viewing Fig. 4 of the drawings, and comparing this view with the other figures, in accordance with the process by which I finished up my stocking I provide two toe portions which are absolutely independent of each other except at the point where the extra toe-portion 15 has been transferred to the needles, and this I have illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings where the extra toe portion 12 has been drawn rearwardly into the stocking so as to show its entire independence of the pri-i mary toe member 11 except at the line already referred to.

This independence of the two toe portions is the result of the manner in which I loop and seam the various portions of the stocking, as already set forth, and my invention from another standpoint is directed to the provision of these two toe portions which, while nested one within the other, are independent of each other, except as already referred to.

By separately looping and seaming each toe member, as already above described, I am thus enabled to remove one of the toe members by cutting it away along the line along which it has been topped to the stocking without in any way affecting the continuity of the stocking or without requiringany seaming or other similar operations.

Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. As an article of apparel, a full fashioned stocking having a conventional foot portion and a conventional toe portion, and a supplemental toe portion connected to the stock ingalong the same line along which the first mentioned toe portion is connected and otherwise wholly disconnected from the first mentioned toe portion, said two toe portions being looped and seamed separately'so as to provide two independent toe members, whereby one of the toe portions can be moved out of nested association with the other toe portion and then removed.

2. As an article of apparel, a full fashioned stocking having an instep and sole portion and a toe portion knitted thereon, and an extra toe looped to the instep and sole portion where the first mentioned toe portion begins, the said two toe portions being looped and sealned separately so as to provide two independent toe members, one of which can be removed without impairing the continuity of the stocking structure.

3. The process of providing a for a full fashioned stocking, including the step of simultaneously initiating the association with the knitted. instep and sole, of two separate toe members, of separately looping each toe member, then separately seaming one of the toe members, and then seaming the lrest of the stocking including the other toe member, so as toprovide two toe members disconnected from each other except for their association along the line between the sole andinstep portion and the two toe members.

4. The process of providing a double toe for a full fashioned stocking, including the step of simultaneously initiating the' association with a knitted instep and sole, of two separate toe members, and .of separately looping and seaming each toe member so as to provide two toe members disconnected from each other except for their association along a line common to the sole and instep;

portion and the said two toe members.

In witness whereof I have signed this specification this 10th day of July, 1928. JOSEPH C. J. STRAHAN.

double toe 1' 

